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The President of Tunisia Badges Quaid es-sebsi in his new year address to the nation mentioned the killing of Muhammad al-Zawari, saying about the possible involvement of Israel in the death of the engineer. He noted that the investigation is ongoing and new data that allow us to say that the assassination of al-Sawri were «external forces».

As previously reported, the 49-year-old Muhammad al-Zawari that developed unmanned aircraft for the militants of the terrorist organization Hamas, was shot dead in a car near his home in Sfax on December 15. According to the Tunisian newspaper La Presse, was made 28 shots from the automatic guns with silencers, at least eight of the bullets hit in the head and in the heart of al-Zawari. On the scene found two handguns and silencers to them. The investigation concluded that the killing of the engineer was made by a group of people who have used four vehicles – a KIA, Hyundai, Citroen C4 and Renault Trafic.

The website of the newspaper «Al-Shuruk» wrote that detained eight suspects – the tenants of these cars, owners car, as well as journalists and photographer, who recently interviewed al-Zawari. The arrests were made in the cities of Tunisia, Djerba and Sfax. All the detainees are citizens of Tunisia. In search announced some suspects are Tunisian citizens and one person with a passport of a citizen of Morocco and Belgium.

The investigation established that the killers of al-Zawari define in advance the location of the surveillance cameras around his house and changed the contents of the records.

A Tunisian media reported on the possible involvement of Israeli intelligence service «Mossad» to the elimination of Muhammad al-Zawari. In several publications it was noted that «mostovtsy» usually do not throw used weapons at the scene. But it was suggested that the killers deliberately made extra shots and threw a few guns to confuse the investigation.

Israel has not claimed responsibility for the killing of Muhammad al-Zawari.

Published in the Lebanese newspaper «al-Akhbar» wrote that Muhammad al-Zawari was associated with Hamas and held the post of head of Department unmanned aerial vehicles in the group «Izaddina Brigades of al-kasama», developing drones and training terrorists to control the UAV.

«Al-Akhbar» has no doubt that al-Sawari were eliminated by the agents of «Mossad». The newspaper writes that the handwriting of the killers is reminiscent of the circumstances of the elimination of Hassan al-Kesa, who held a similar post in the «Hezbollah» – the head of Department drones. Al-Cies were destroyed in Beirut in 2013. The newspaper reminds about the elimination of senior Hamas leader Mahmoud al-Mabhouh, killed in UAE in 2010.

According to published reports, last week, al-Zawari returned from a short trip to Lebanon. Approached by a journalist asking for an interview about technological innovations, but it went from Tunisia to Hungary the day before the murder. According to other sources, al-Zawari managed to give one or more interviews; journalists who met him arrested.

48 website reported that, according to Tunisian reporter Bansayah al-Maki, Muhammad al-Zawari recently engaged in a project of the submarine with remote control.

Radwan al-Zawari, brother of the deceased, said that the engineer had not received threats in his address.

Hamas confirmed that Muhammad al-Zawari was at the forefront of UAV development program for militants of the organization. «Brigades of al-kasama» threatened to retaliate against Israel for the death of the engineer. According to published reports, al-Zawari developed unmanned equipment for Hamas in the last 10 years. Furthermore, it is likely he worked on the Lebanese Hizbullah.

It is known that in the early 1990-ies Muhammad al-Zawari, had had contacts with the Islamist organization «Muslim brotherhood», under pressure from the authorities of Tunisia was forced to leave the country and moved to Syria, where he established contacts with representatives of the Palestinian terrorist organization Hamas. In 2011, after the regime change in Tunisia, he returned home and opened a private engineering College, which not only taught, but also created a model of unmanned aircraft and submarines.

According to the site «Izaddina brigades of al-kasama», this group is Muhammad al-Zawari develop options for unmanned aircraft Ababil (A1 various modifications and others). Similar aircraft are used by fighters of the Lebanese «Hezbollah», which also gets Iranian-made UAV.

Unmanned aviation Hamas

The first publication about the attempts by Hamas militants to get their hands on drones to use them as guided aerial bombs, appeared in 2008.

In October 2012, over the Negev was hit by enemy UAV. Hizbullah claimed that the aircraft was launched from Lebanese territory, flew more than 100 km over the Eastern Mediterranean, and then invaded Israeli airspace. But many Arab media, particularly the newspaper «al-Hayat» wrote that the launch could be carried out in the Gaza strip, with the knowledge of Hamas leadership.

In November 2012, during the anti-terrorist operation «pillar of Cloud», the Israeli military published a video, which was recorded as militants «Izaddina brigades of al-kasama» conducted tests of unmanned aircraft.

In October 2013, the Hamas militants intended to carry out the attack on several Israeli targets, running a booby-trapped mini-UAV from Hebron. The attack was prevented by Palestinian security forces.

In July 2014, during the antiterrorist operation protective edge, Hamas militants have launched several drones toward Israel. At least one of these UAVs was shot down over Ashdod. «Brigades al-Qassam» said then that was running a mini-UAVs of three types: intelligence (A1A), bomber (A1B) and «Shahid» (exploding upon impact with the target, A1C). The militants claimed that a reconnaissance aircraft was able to reach tel Aviv and to take pictures Kirii (complex of buildings of the Ministry of defense).

Launches from Gaza continued after the completion of the operation «Indestructible rock»: one UAV of terrorists crashed in June 2015 about the separation fence, another was shot down in September 2016.